The 2014-15 Clippers Are Going in the Right Direction (P. 3)

I think Doc is trying to emulate the Spurs' identity... motion offense with unselfish ball movement, team defense. I know just about every team pays lip service to the Spurs' model but we actually aren't that far off.

Some aspects of the identity may be there: ball movement, but team defense is affected by the ability of each player. We simply don't have the defensive minded players that San Antonio has. I hate it when members on CTB try and compare these two franchises (not suggesting you are). It's really bad practice because we assume....

I'm not saying we are the Spurs, just that the systems Doc has installed and some of the moves he's made suggest that's the direction he wants to go in. For example, one key advantage in the Spurs' offense is having multiple big men who can pass (Duncan and Diaw). Blake is a top-notch passer himself, and Doc added one of the best passing bigs in the league in Hawes to complement him.

uncool

07/20/2014 - 12:15 PM PST

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Whoa! Am I dreaming? JQuick just kinda gave Doc a compliment on a FA move?! lol

clipperboy24

07/20/2014 - 12:47 PM PST

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I would love for us to have spurs type ball movement but IMO we are t even close to that.

Agent0

07/20/2014 - 01:32 PM PST

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I'd say it is unfair to Blake to call it simply a lack of defensive skill, though in no way is he as skilled a defender as Duncan. Still, before the skill aspect, the biggest differentiating thing between Duncan and Blake on defense is simply going to be that Blake has the length of a big SF while Duncan has the size and length of a C.

So if Duncan and Blake give the exact same effort on defense, Duncan will have a much greater defensive impact, it's just the reality. I've mentioned it many times, but the Spurs are blessed with Duncan being equally as good at C as he is at PF on both ends. Lakers also had this luxury with Pau and Odom in that at his best Pau could play both PF and C equally well on both ends, so a lineup of Pau/Odom wasn't really playing two PF's. Offensively, but more important, defensively, Duncan can play what people ascribe as the C's role.

That ability gives you an added versatility in lineups that you can use with your best big man on the floor that the Clippers just can't do effectively. We couldn't comfortably play combinations like Blake/Bonner, Blake/Blair because we lose all semblance of rim protection and shot blocking, and it's just small. For example, SA would actually work perfectly fine with Glen Davis last season because they'll play Duncan/Davis and Duncan is the defensive anchor and rim protector and actually the C. For the Clippers it meant being small and having no rim protection.

With the Clippers Blake/Diaw looks more like a Phoenix Suns Marion/Diaw lineup than it does like a SA lineup because in a Duncan/Diaw, Duncan is the defensive anchor, rim protector, shot blocker, and you aren't actually undersized.

I think the Spurs are a great blueprint, I think over said it enough that everyone knows I think that. I don't believe you try and copy every type of player they have, that's dumb, their fits are different again because of a guy like Duncan, but the same idea. The Spurs can win with offense or defense, the Spurs can sweep or go toe to toe with a very good team in a series with Tony Parker playing like crap compared to his normal production. Clippers are basically doomed if Paul isn't killing it in a series.

The Clippers in the playoffs can still only win games / series on offense, and maybe we'll develop an offense that is just so good that is is sufficient to consistently beat high level teams even though they are scoring better than average on us, but the teams potential won't be maximized until games can be won with both offense and defense. I'd rather take my chances on being more balanced with high level offense and defense than becoming this super elite offense.

SamMays

07/20/2014 - 03:19 PM PST

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I think Blake Griffin has made great strides defensively. He's never going to be a big shot blocker. He's just not long enough, but he is becoming a defender very much in the Karl Malone mold. He's strong and can hold his position and he is becoming very adept at picking up charges. His weak side defense is also much better as he is becoming much more alert to his rotations. You don't have to be a shot blocker to be a solid defender and Blake is becoming one.

BaadMaster

07/21/2014 - 12:38 AM PST

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It seems the NBA is now a Big Two or Big Three and great coaching League. Since we have a great Big Three -- maybe the best in the NBA if KLove stays put -- and a terrific coach, we have as good a chance as any to win it all.

As I have said in many of my previous posts, the new CBA has made it all but impossible to have a great player at every position -- like the Bird Celtics and the Magic Lakers. Recently, the Championship Heat had less than stellar players at center and shooting guard. This year's Spurs were not all All-Stars, but a Big Two -- Duncan and Parker -- and some great coaching did the trick. If we have Duds and Barnes at SF, so what? There's always gonna be some weak players on any NBA team with this new CBA. (Although I do wish we drafted Kyle Anderson. SMH. That pick was a Jim Buss style move!)

Now all we need is health and a little bit of luck and we have a great chance for the Finals.

That's my take on it.

ClipperDodger1214

07/21/2014 - 01:22 AM PST

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The difference between us and the Heat is that Miami was able to get away without having any presence inside the paint. They pretty much had no center and really no bigs at all during their four year run and yet pretty much were able to escape unscathed. But once they got to the Finals, they got exposed for their lack of size. With DJ, Hawes and bringing Big Baby back, that inside presence on defense hopefully shouldn't be a problem us, though I'm not sure Hawes is that on defense.

clipper*joe

07/21/2014 - 09:06 AM PST

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DJ isn't a post up defender at all. From what I've seen, Hawes does a damn decent job of it. Hawes brings what DJ doesn't do well at all but Hawes does what DJ (rebound-blocks) does pretty good. Overall, he expands our offensive opportunities while defending at a slightly lower clip. I can live with that.

ClipperKyle32

07/21/2014 - 09:37 AM PST

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I think a lineup with Chris,JJ,Barnes,Hawes,DJ may be one of the best lineups we put on the floor. Hawes and JJ open the floor for Chris to drive, Barnes to slash, and DJ to do what he does...

clip49

07/21/2014 - 09:44 AM PST

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The Heat is not a problem anymore without Lebron James.

The Spurs and Thunder are the biggest obstacles. And GSW is tough also.

Clippers are within the 3 best teams in the NBA.

clipperboy24

07/21/2014 - 11:18 AM PST

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I hope you mean Blake in that lineup instead of Hawes or Barnes . I mean he is only out best player

CapsNClips

07/21/2014 - 01:47 PM PST

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Blake Griffin on the bench? Seems logical.

kjavis

07/21/2014 - 07:22 PM PST

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I wouldn't say the Spurs exposed the Heat more like exploited on a deteriorating roster. Before Wades knee really hit the fan the Heat was one of the longest and quickest teams in the league, their perimeter defense and quick rotations is what made them one of the top defensive teams during their championship runs. Relying on big bodies to cover up for our lack of wing defense is a poor strategy, all it takes is a miss rotation for the opposition to get an easy layup as KD and Westbrick showed in last season series.

loyalclipfan

07/24/2014 - 03:02 AM PST

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The team WILL BE SOLD, to Ballmer, AND just where do we stand compared to last season at the start of preseason game time?
Let's see, we have hayes instead of Mullen and hollins. More money....

I'm with you. While we didn't upgrade our SF spot, our roster is looking a lot better than it did at the beginning of last year. I'm holding out hope that Dudley can rediscover some of his Phoenix magic and give us some productive minutes. If not, Barnes played well as a starter and I think Bullock, with more minutes, may prove to be a decent option at the 3. Besides, it's our second year under Doc and I think the only place to go is up.

Clippers_FTW

07/24/2014 - 07:33 AM PST

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Agreed... Blake should get some Extra expirence on Team USA.

ClipperKyle32

07/24/2014 - 07:48 AM PST

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Speaking of Team USA that is where DJ's take off began

ClipperKyle32

07/24/2014 - 08:17 AM PST

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I would love for the Clippers to get longer and athletic ( why I mentioned Shannon Brown )
This Clipper team currently constructed is better than last season.
Hawes >>> Big Baby,Mullens,Jamison,Hollins
A Big Baby in shape ,....

I'm with you on this one. While we lost a little in the PG dept., we gained in the Bigs dept. I can live with that...Now. I've always thought and said that if not for CP3, we would have closed out the Thunder and made it to the WCF. For me, that was my personal goal for the team. Although we fell short of it, it was our undoing, not that we got beat by a far superior team. I think we're still there if not improved. As far as DTS goes, I've always maintained that he will not EVER make another decision for the team and he will no longer be an active owner for the Clippers.

Agent0

07/24/2014 - 09:01 AM PST

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We're more critical of DJ because we watch him, so I'd say it is unfair to say that he isn't a post defender at all. He still has issues with positioning and leverage, but length and athletic ability even with some shaky fundamentals will still give guys problems. Hawes had a weird season of numbers. Looking at synergy, he had pretty great situational defensive numbers in everything but post-up defense with Philly but was like one of the worst in the league with Cleveland.

Similarly his FG% given up at the rim, though this time not great in Philly, it was below average with Philly at 52.3%, but with Celveland it was awful at 56%. So despite Philly not being any sort of special defensive team, his defensive numbers looked better there. I do believe they defended better earlier in the season, so that plays into it. DJ have up 49.1% which is probably average compared to C's. Of course you have to account for perimeter defense. A weak perimeter defense that gives up easy blow bys, therefore not giving you time to rotate as a big man will make your numbers look worse. You'll get within 5 feet but not in proper contest range. Considering some of our perimeter defense flaws, DJ's numbers aren't necessarily too bad.

It was also good to see that both DJ and Hawes were in range for a lot of shots. It could mean your team gives up too many attempts at the rim or it could mean that you are rotating and at least trying to get to contesting position or a mixture of both.

DeAndre for the season also came out with quite good numbers via Synergy. He have up 0.76 PPP and 38% FG in isolation and 0.81 PPP and 41.2% FG in post-ups. Hawes with Philly gave up 0.76 PPP and 37.5% FG in isolation and 0.84 PPP and 44.2% FG in post-ups. DJ wins out in post ups.

Hawes in Cleveland was awful, so I'll overlook that as due to team. Hawes spot-up defense numbers were nice in Philly, 0.79 PPP and 34.8% FG, usually C's will rank better in this as opposing C's don't shoot spot up as well as other positions. So we have to take into account that C's aren't league wide hitting a very high percentage on spot up, but the numbers are any spot up possession you defend, so if a teammate misses a rotation and you try to cover for them and contest, if the player makes it, it counts as being made against you, so there is some error in there. Hawes in defending the roll man in pick and roll gave up 0.82 PPP / 43.2% FG.

DJ have up 0.94 PPP / 46.4% FG to roll man on pick and roll, and 0.86 PPP / 38% to spot up shooters. So Hawes based on his Philly numbers and not mentioning his terrible Cavs numbers doesn't look bad at all defensively in those numbers.

If I had time I would watch the specific plays on Synergy, but I don't, so maybe another day.

Agent0

07/24/2014 - 09:05 AM PST

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I do think we have to be careful with athleticism for the sake of athleticism. Shannon Brown is a great athlete, but those skills don't play out on the court outside of the occasional highlight play. He doesn't get to the rim that much because of poor handles and not really any impressive first step for such an athlete, he doesn't really shoot well from outside, he's an above average defender, but not great.

If it was like getting Tony Allen on defense, then yes, though of course if he was that good he wouldn't be available, but the last thing we need to add is a below average 6'4 SG just because he can jump. We have 3-4 SG's already.

WinningBasket

07/24/2014 - 10:46 AM PST

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This is a great pick-me-up reminder of the good things to come. Thank you! DTS and his litigious arse has put such a pall of doom and gloom over the Clippers that it's refreshing to read something positive and hopeful.

Clear skies ahead!

BennyBeFly

07/24/2014 - 12:19 PM PST

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I agree that everything seems okay. But as a longtime Clipper fan, I can't help but feel like things will go sour - fast. Until he whole donald sterling fiasco is completely closed shut and Ballmer is in the owners box, I cannot even think about next season.

I'm more excited to watch LeBron with the Cavs right now than the Clippers. Matter of fact, 82 games is too long. Last season felt like it took forever because I wanted to see how they'd fare in the Playoffs. And honestly I still have a bad taste from Game 5 against OKC. We would have been up 3-2 going back to LA if we didn't lose that 7pt lead in 40seconds. Ugh, still hurts.

I am currently going through and watching many of our regular season games... I have found a few thins so far.
1.)
What Collison gave us offensively he almost gave it right back up defensively.
Collison was a....